Goldberg and Guthrie

The Official Blog of Abby Normal. Do Not Use This Blog!

Wednesday, January 19, 2005

Lost

... will be on tonight. And this is the episode we have to pay attention to, because something will be revealed. I'll post a comment here - I'm just trying to build up all of the readers' anticipation.

UPDATE: (Spoilers - don't read if you don't want to know what happened on Lost.)

I liked it, although not that much was revealed. As I've said before, the best episodes are where the flashbacks tie into why the characters were on the plane - as I think the writers are figuring out. This was great, because we saw why Michael was in Australia and why there is tension between him and his son. I liked the idea Michael lied to his son to protect him, even though it made him look like the bad guy. And all the stuff with Walt being able to control things with his mind was really well done - the part with the bird hitting the window was great. The only thing that sucked was the CGI polar bear, which looked less realistic than the polar bears in Coke commercials.

One thing, I hope viewers aren't expecting - and the writers don't feel pressured to deliver - some awesome twist ending to the show that will tie everything together and blow our minds. I read the Television Without Pity boards, and it seems like people are waiting for a payoff. Well, this is the payoff. All these people are in this fantastic and somewhat absurd situation, and the point of the show is to reveal who they were before they got to the island and show how they will interact - with each other and with the island (and whoever is already there).

I'm reminded of Twin Peaks - the pinnacle of pop culture and possibly American art. David Lynch never wanted the show to be a mystery - and it was at its best when it wasn't. The idea was to start the show with the murder of the homecoming queen (Laura Palmer) and to use the investigation as a vehicle for learning about the town, Laura and the FBI agent doing the investigating. The murder was supposed to fade into the background, and never really be solved. But other people involved with the show had different ideas - and it was marketed and presented as a mystery - "who killed Laura Palmer?". Of course, once the mystery was solved, the show sort of lost its direction - only to recapture it in Fire Walk With Me - the most underrated movie ever made.

I hope the Lost writers don't feel pressured to come up with a huge twist; to reveal some fact that makes everything fit together. I like the show because it moves so slowly and tells us so much about each of the characters. I'm not waiting for something to happen - I only hope this is how the creators feel and some stupid twist - like, they're all dead or it's all taking place in Walt's mind - doesn't ruin it all.

Also, I do not at all enjoy having George Bush as the President. (You know, to keep with the political theme and all.)